Adelaide Captain Jordan Dawson has sung the praises of star teammate Riley Thilthorpe, who secured his first All-Australian blazer on Thursday night. 

Dawson, who was also recognised as an All-Australian at the AFL Awards, spoke of the hard work and dedication Thilthorpe had put into his game when asked about the 201cm forward at a press conference on Friday afternoon

The Crows’ Skipper said he could not have been more proud to have Thilthorpe standing beside him as part of the AFL’s most prestigious 22.

“He’s come a long way in the past year, Riley,” Dawson said.

“He’s obviously developed his body and mind over a number of years, and to see his development as a player this year as a result of that hard work has been phenomenal.

“Riley is a great character to have around the Club, he brings a lot of energy and life to our group and I’m so rapt that he has been recognised with a spot in the All-Australian team.”

Although Dawson and Thilthorpe were the only two Crows to feature in the final team, the Club did have a further three representatives in the All-Australian squad with Josh Worrell, Mark Keane and Izak Rankine named.

Dawson said while he would have liked to see more teammates join him in the final side, it was an honour for the Club to have such a large contingent in the squad of 44.

“It was fantastic we had a number of guys in the squad and I obviously thought he (Josh) would make the team but you also can’t take anyone out of that team, there are some really great players in there,” Dawson said.

“I thought he might have got in, but it’s obviously not up to us, the selectors made the decision and that’s fine.

“Internally we reward each other for the roles we’re able to play as a whole group, it was a great honour for the five of us who were in the squad, but we’re not in there unless the team is playing at a really high-level.

“So as a Club we are really proud of Josh, Izak and Keaney (Mark Keane), they should be stoked to be named in the top 40 players in the comp.”

An All-Australian nod was not the only honour Dawson received at Thursday night’s AFL Awards, as he was recognised as the AFL Players’ Association’s (AFLPA) Best Captain.

“It (the honour) probably hasn’t really sunk in to be completely honest, it’s been a fair journey,” Dawson said.

“For my peers to value me as a captain and to ultimately win that award, it’s something really special to me and something I will definitely reflect on at the end of my career and be very proud of.”

Adelaide faces Collingwood in a qualifying final at Adelaide Oval on Thursday, with the first bounce at 7.10pm.

For more information ahead of the game, head to the Club’s finals hub here.